So, I avoided the library. It was better to see her at the wine bar, or the bakery, or walking on the sidewalk. If she noticed me then, and I managed to react to her as I always have and act like a cold-blooded ass, then it didn’t feel so bad, her shift to adamant dislike.

I walk into the library and look around. It’s about the size of two school classrooms. The ceilings are high and vaulted with wooden beams. There are large arched windows looking over the Romeo River, rocking chairs, magazine stands, and a puzzle table where a man and a boy sort through small puzzle pieces. To my right is the circulation desk, where you can check out books. There’s an older white-haired woman behind it, but not Jessie. I wander farther into the library. There are long rows with shelves and shelves of books. The children’s section has a dress-up area, a play kitchen, a train table and a huge cushioned chair. A mom and her two boys are in the chair reading a picture book. The younger boy looks up and waves at me. I hold up my hand and wave back.

I wander through the shelves and run my hand over the cool spines of the books. I breathe in the deep smell of old paperbacks and taped book bindings. There are about a dozen people here, but it’s as hushed as a winter’s morning after a heavy snow.

I’ve circled the library but I don’t see Jessie. I wonder where she is. It’s three o’clock and I know she works until five on weekdays. I look down and rub the worn cover of the thin paperback in my hand. It’s my favorite book, I’ve read it so many times that I’ve had to glue and tape and re-glue the binding. The cover is torn into three different places and I think in a few years the book may fall apart beyond repair.

I sigh and head toward the circulation desk, book in hand.

“Excuse me.”

The white-haired woman behind the circulation desk looks up from her reading and smiles. She pulls off her pink and purple reading glasses.

“Checking out?” She looks at the book in my hand.

“No. No, this isn’t a library book. I’m looking for Jessie.”

The woman smiles and her eyes crinkle. “You must be Gavin.”

What the…?

I shake my head. “No. I’m his brother.”

I lean forward and try to look friendly when I’m feeling anything but. “Is she expecting him?”

She clicks her tongue against her teeth. “Well, we all are, aren’t we? After Miss Erma announced him as Jessie’s soul mate. Congratulations on your brother’s match.” She smiles.

I show her my teeth and hope it looks like a grin and not me grinding my teeth together.